(SHERIDAN COUNTY)-Commissioners Jack Andersen, Dan Kling and James Krotz were all present at the Sheridan County Board of Commissioners meeting this week as well as county clerk Sindy Coburn. The board approved resolutions authorizing treasurer Peg Sones to transfer monies from the Lodging Fund to the G.I.V.E. Fund and from the General Fund to the Road Fund and the treasurer’s office Petty Cash Fund. These transfers enable the allocation of funds as approved in the 2012-13 Budget.

Road superintendent Tom Kuester reported that he had crews working overtime last week to take advantage of the moistures from the recent rain and snow. Grading gravel roads in drought conditions can damage the integrity of the road surface, and the rain/snow made it possible to deal with some of the severe washboard road conditions.

Kuester reported that traffic for the new Justice Center being built just north of the NE/SD border west of White Clay will use 790 Road as its primary means of access. The road belongs to South Dakota, but Sheridan County negotiated a maintenance agreement with them several years ago to protect the interest of county residents living along the road. There is now reason to be concerned about damage to the road that will come with increased traffic.

The board discussed a proposal from the Nebraska Game and Parks Department to provide interim financing to buy hay for deer displaced by the recent fires. The proposal is that the county would purchase $15,000 worth of hay, distribute it to impacted areas and then be reimbursed by Game and Parks. The consensus of the board was that a more equitable and efficient approach to distributing the resources would be for ranchers and farmers to submit claims to Game and Parks for hay lost to deer and elk. The commissioners were also concerned that the project would expose the county to an unacceptable degree of liability. They decided Game and Parks is better equipped than the county to carry out the project.

An inspection of the north lawn of the courthouse led the commissioners to agree that reseeding and/or laying sod on the area disturbed by recent construction should be delayed until spring.

The commissioners conducted their quarterly inspection of the jail and found no concerns to address with the sheriff.

The board will not meet on Monday, November 5th. The next scheduled meeting will be held on Monday, November 12th at 9:00 a.m.

All meetings are open to the public, and visitors are welcome. For a list of proceedings and complete minutes of past meetings in a searchable database, visit www.sheridancountynebraska.com.